2006 SCHEDULE (32-8) 2006 NOTRE DAME BASEBALL FEBRUARY * – BIG EAST game (vs. Purdue ... April 25 ... Eck Stadium) Thur. 23 vs. Indiana St. (Mill., TN) W, 3-0 HOMESTAND ROLLS ON – Notre Dame is nearing the end of its current 12-game Service Academies Classic (Millington, TN) Fri. 24 vs. Air Force W, 8-2 homestand and will look to extend the longest win streak in the program’s 114- Sat. 25 vs. Memphis L, 6-7 (10) year history (22 games) with Tuesday night’s game vs. Purdue (7:05 EDT; live on Sun. 26 vs. Oklahoma L, 3-4 ESPN-U) ... please note that the game time was shifted back an hour due to the TV MARCH broadcast ... ND currently ranks 4th in the nation for win pct. (.800) and 7th in wins Minnesota Dairy Queen Classic (Metrodome) (32-8) ... hot-hitting senior 1B Craig Cooper has earned national player-of-the-week Fri. 3 vs. #4 Nebraska L, 1-11 honors after batting 10-for-19 with 13 RBI and 4 home runs in five wins last week Sat. 4 vs. Minnesota L, 0-8 ... sophomore LHP Wade Korpi will look to maintain his midweek mastery as the Sun. 5 vs. Arizona L, 0-2 (10) starter vs. the Boilermakers. UTSA Express Classic (Wolff Stadium; San Antonio) Fri. 10 vs. #15 Texas A&M W, 5-4 TV, RADIO, LIVE-STATS, TEXT-MESSAGE UPDATES & HOTLINE – All of ND’s Sat. 11 vs. Iowa W, 16-2 2006 regular-season and postseason games again will be broadcast by South Sun. 12 vs. Illinois W, 4-2 Bend’s ESPN Radio (now on 1490 AM) ... the broadcasts are available online at Mon. 13 vs. Iowa W, 6-2 www.und.com (All-Access subscription) ... und.com provides links to livestats on the Irish Baseball Classic (Wolff Stadium; San Antonio) website’s main page, for all home games and select road games ... a free text-mes- Thur. 16 vs. Iowa W, 7-5 sage service, Irish Alert, now is available (see und.com for details) ... call the ND Fri. 17 vs. Southern Illinois W, 12-2 Sports Hotline at 574-631-3000 for schedule and results of all varsity sports (from Fri. 17 vs. Iowa L, 8-10 main menu, select “4” and then select “1” for baseball information). Sat. 18 vs. Southern Illinois W, 4-0 Tues. 21 Wright State L, 2-4 Wed. 22 Central Michigan W, 11-9 AROUND THE HORN at Povich Field (Bethesda, MD) • SILVER STREAK – The 22-game win streak has bested the ’91 team (18) for Sat. 25 vs. Georgetown* L, 3-8; W, 12-2 longest (single-season) and the 1906-07 teams (21) for best overall win streak Sun. 26 vs. Georgetown* W, 6-3 at aby time in ND history, also the longest in D-I this season ... ND owns a .359- Tues. 28 Valparaiso W, 12-0 .234 batting edge in the streak (2.94 ERA, .973 fielding/23 Es). Wed. 29 Western Michigan W, 2-0 • THREE-PRONGED ATTACK – ND last week was ranked 26th nationally in Fri. 31 Pittsburgh* W, 6-1 batting avg. (.318, now .329), 13th in ERA (3.12, now 3.33) and 20th in fielding APRIL pct. (.970, mow .972), with Nebraska being the only other team in the top-30 for Sat. 1 Pittsburgh* W, 4-3 Sun. 2 Pittsburgh* W, 9-8 all three categories. Tues. 4 Chicago State W, 6-4 • WILY VETERANS – ND’s 10 regular position players include 5 seniors, 2 ju- Wed. 5 Ball State W, 6-4 Fri. 7 at South Florida* W, 9-5 niors, 2 sophomore and freshman Jeremy Barnes, with that group combining to Sat. 8 at South Florida* W, 10-4 start 1,175 career games (4,297 ABs; 1,325 hits; 795 RBI; .308 bat. avg.). Sun. 9 at South Florida* W, 10-1 • HOME BOYS – The Irish lost their home opener on March 21 but have not lost Tues. 11 Oakland W, 15-1 Wed. 12 Manchester W, 8-2 at Eck Stadium in the past five weeks (18-1), batting .345 (16 HRs) with a 3.45 Thur. 13 St. John’s (DH)* (CSTV) W, 9-2/13-7 staff ERA (just 4 HR allowed) in the 19 home games. Sat. 15 St. John’s* W, 7-5 Tues. 18 Toledo W, 8-2 • LOTS-O-LINEUPS – ND’s first 40 games have featured 35 different batting Wed. 19 IPFW (Comcast Local) W, 4-3 (10) orders, including 32 different orders in the first 32 games. Fri. 21 Rutgers* W, 11-5 • IN THE CLUTCH – The Irish are batting .351 with runners in scor. pos. (.309 Sat. 22 Rutgers* W, 15-3 Sun. 23 Rutgers* W, 14-12 in ’05), led by Lopez (.423), Dressman (.408) and Rizzo (.380). Tues. 25 Purdue (ESPN-U) 7:05 p.m. • QUICK STARTERS – ND owns a +27 scoring margin in the 1st inning this Wed. 26 Bowling Green 5:05 p.m. Sat. 29 at Connecticut (DH)* noon season (48-21), outhitting the opponents .384-.305 in the opening frame. Sun. 30 at Connecticut* 11:00 a.m. • BIG INNINGS – Notre Dame totaled just four “big innings” (5-plus runs) in the MAY first 28 games of the ’06 but has scored 5-plus in seven of the past 12 games. Tues. 2 Cleveland State 5:05 p.m. Fri. 5 Louisville* 6:05 p.m. • HBP ... PDQ – The Irish lead the BIG EAST with 65 times hit-by-pitch (301 Sat. 6 Louisville* 1:05 p.m. over the past three seasons) and feature five players among the top-12 on the Sun. 7 Louisville* 12:05 p.m. ND career HBP charts: Cody Rizzo (1st, 77; 3rd NCAA history), Brett Lilley (2nd, Sat. 13 at Seton Hall (DH)* noon 40), Alex Nettey (3rd, 38), Greg Lopez (7th, 32) and Craig Cooper (12th, 25). Sun. 14 at Seton Hall* noon Tues. 16 vs. Michigan (Comcast Local) 7:00 p.m. • NO-FLY ZONE – The ND pitchers have allowed just 8 home runs all season (t4 (5th/3rd Park; Comstock Park, MI) at Eck Stadium) and had a 25-game stretch without an opp. HR (943 BF). at Villanova Ballpark (Plymouth Meeting, PA) Thur. 18 vs. Villanova* 4:00 p.m. • POWER SURGE – The Irish managed just 10 home runs in the first 30 games Fri. 19 vs. Villanova* 4:00 p.m. of the season but have awoken for 15 HRs in the current homestand (10 GP). Sat. 20 vs. Villanova* noon • LEADOFF LEADER – Craig Cooper has reached base 23-of-31 times (74%) Tues.- 23- BIG EAST Tourn. (final on ESPN-U) when leading off the game for the ND offense (4 HR, 6 2B) and is riding a 21- Sat. 27 Br. House Net. Field (Clearwater, FL) Fri.- 2- NCAA Regionals game hit streak. Sun. 4 (Campus Sites) • KILLER B’s – The pattern of rotating heroes this season has included the likes Fri.- 9- NCAA Super Regionals Sun. 11 (Campus Sites) of (Matt) Bransfield, (Ross) Brezovsky, (Jeremy) Barnes and Brett (Lilley). Fri.- 16- College World Series • SUPER AT SHORT – Greg Lopez owns a 5-to-1 ratio of RBI (team-best) to Mon. 26 (Omaha, NE) errors (6), 3rd-best among shortstops from teams currently in the BA top-20. THE SERIES – Notre Dame holds a 76-37-3 edge in a series vs. Purdue that IN-STATE BATTLES – After the season- dates back to 1894 (46-20-1 at ND, 5-1 at Eck Stadium) ... the Irish hold a opening win over Indiana State and the re- 7-2 series edge in the Paul Mainieri era ... the series has included 20 one-run cent wins over Valparaiso, Ball State, Man- games (13 won by ND) and 14 shutous (12 by ND). chester and IPFW, Notre Dame now owns a 53-10 record (.841) vs. fellow Indiana- RECAPPING THE LAST MEETING (ND 9, Purdue 7 in 12; at South Bend’s based schools during the Paul Mainieri era Coveleski Stadium) – Craig Cooper battled back from an 0-2 count to launch (since ’95), with games versus: Valparaiso a game-ending home run over the leftfield fence, as ND outlasted Purdue in (11-1), Butler (7-0), Manchester (7-0), Pur- a wild 12-inning game that marked the first action for the Irish at downtown due (6-2), IUPUI (5-0), Indiana Tech (4-1), Coveleski Stadium in more than a decade ... it had been nearly three years Indiana (3-0), Indianapolis (2-0), IPFW (3- – dating back to Brian Stavisky’s blast versus Rice at the 2002 College World 0), Indiana State (2-1), Ball State (3-4) and Series – since ND had won an a game-ending home run ... the Irish had Evansville (1-1). surged to a 7-6 lead after scoring three times in the 8th but Purdue tied the score in the 9th ... Alex Nettey entered the game mired in a 1-for-18 slump ECK-CELLENT – Notre Dame recently but went 4-for-6 from the leadoff spot with a solo home run that forged a 3-3 posted the program’s 300th win in 13 sea- tie in the 3rd (he also scored as part of a productive 1st inning for the Irish) sons at Eck Stadium (now 307-66-1), win- ... Brett Lilley hit 2-for-4 from the 2-hole (2 BB, 2 R) but the rest of the Irish ning better than 82% of the games in the batters combined for a sub-.200 night (6-for-31) ... 3-hole hitter Matt Edwards, home facility ... the only teams with more and cleanup man Cooper had combined for an 0-for-9 night (one walk each) than three wins at Eck vs. ND: St. John’s before Cooper’s game-ending blast ... the bottom of the 12th included Lilley’s (5-10), West Virginia (5-8), Miami, Fla. (4- full-count walk vs. LHP Andrew Groves, who then struck out Edwards and 1), Ball State (4-3) and Rutgers (4-11). had an 0-2 count on Cooper – who took the next two pitches for balls before turning on fastball and sending it well over the leftfield fence ... Purdue’s 17-hit FOUR-PEAT NO EASY FEAT – Oral Rob- attack included four players with three hits but the Boilermakers left 15 on base erts (8) is the only team in the nation with a ... ND had 23 total baserunners but hit into five double plays ... Tony Langford longer active streak of conference tourna- inherited the go-ahead run on third base with one out in the 12th but came up ment titles than Notre Dame’s four straight with a clutch K and flyout to maintain the 6-6 score ... Wade Korpi endured an BIG EAST Tournament titles ... Rice won adventurous six innings that saw Purdue cash in 11 hits and one walk for six nine straight Western Athletic Conference runs, just three earned (1 K, 58 of his 91 pitches for strikes) ... Purdue RHP automatic bids from 1997-2005 (the WAC Dan Slater (6 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 BB, 3 Ks) also had no-decision while Groves does not sponsor a tournament and awards took the loss as Purdue’s fourth reliever (2.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, BB, 3 Ks) ... Trae its bid to the regular-season champ) ... Dauby entered the game in the 8th and lost Steve Andres on four pitches ORU and Rice are the only teams – among before Ross Brezovsky then went the other way on a 2-2 pitch, skipping a 30 Division I conferences – that are riding a double down the leftfield line to plate Cooper for a 6-5 game ... Sean Gaston brought home the tying and go-ahead runs with an opposite-field strike that streak of more than four consecutive con- eluded the third baseman for a 7-6 lead ... Purdue tied the game vs. Ryan ference automatic bids ... ND also owns the Doherty, after Spencer Ingladson’s leadoff walk, a sac. bunt by Neal Gorka record for consecutive wins in BIG EAST and John Hunter’s 0-2 single up the middle. tournament play (7, still active). ND PLAYER QUICK NOTES – Jeff Samardzija (40th) and Jeff Manship IRISH TAKING AIM AT EIGHTH STRAIGHT (41st) recently were upgraded to top-50 status on by Baseball America’s list NCAA TRIP – Notre Dame, which bounced of top college prospects for the ’06 MLB draft (UNC and Missouri are the only back from a 14-14 start to the 2005 season other teams with two starting pitchers among the top-50) ... Samardzija has by going 22-8-1 in the second half, made its overcome some bumpy early innings by allowing just 3 total runs in the 3rd- seventh straight appearance in the NCAAs 4th innings this season ... Alex Nettey’s 2-run blast vs. St. John’s (9-7) was and eighth of the Paul Mainieri era (since ND’s 12th game-ending home run in the Mainieri era (first at Eck Stadium ’95) during that 2005 season ... the Irish since ’01) ... Greg Lopez is 3rd on the team in batting (.374; team-best .423 are part of an elite group of 12 teams that with runners in scoring position) and has a 5.1-to-1 ratio of RBI (team-best have appeared in the NCAAs every year 31) to errors (6) that is 2nd-best among shortstops from teams in the current since 1999, with others including: recent BA top-25 poll ... ND has faced only two deficits longer than 3.5 innings in the NCAA champions Miami, LSU, Texas, Rice win streak ... Craig Cooper’s 22-game hit streak matches the longest in the and Cal State Fullerton, plus Florida State, Mainieri era (he has reached base 23-of-31 times when leading off a game for Stanford, Clemson, Tulane, East Carolina the ND offense) while his .445 career conference batting avg. is best ever by a and Oral Roberts ... ND is part of an even BIG EAST player ... five pitchers combined for the 3-hit shutout of Valparaiso smaller list of seven teams that have ad- (12-0) while Wade Korpi went the distance in the 3-hitter vs. Western Michigan vanced to at least the NCAA Regional final (career-best 11 Ks), ND’s first back-to-back shutouts since ’02 ... Kyle Weiland every year since 2000 (six straight), with (10, in 11 chances) already has bested Aaron Heilman’s ND record for saves the other five teams including LSU, Miami, by a freshman (9, in ’98) ... Cooper and Brett Lilley both hit 9-for-13 in the Rice, South Carolina, Stanford and Texas. sweep at USF ... Cody Rizzo is 3rd in NCAA history with 77career HBPs ... top hitters in the win streak: Cooper (.500, 40-for-80, 27 RBI, 9 HR, 3B, 8 2B, 32 R, 12 BB, 6 SB), Lopez (.444, 32-for-72, 18 RBI, 17 R) and Lilley (.444, 28-for-63, 12 RBI, 14 BB). IRISH TEAM NOTES – ND is riding the longest win streak (22) at any time in the program’s 114-year history (the 1906-07 teams combined to win 21 straight) and MAINIERI’S MILESTONES – Notre Dame owns the longest win streak by any Div.-I team this season ... the Irish also have won 12th-year head coach Paul Mainieri post- 14straight BIG EAST games, matching the 2nd-longest league win streak by any team ed his 500th victory with the Irish in the in 22 seasons of BIG EAST baseball (ND’s 2001 team won 18 straight in the BIG 6-3 win over Georgetown ... his 700th EAST) ... ND’s 14-1 start matches its best in 11 BIG EAST seasons (also ’98) ... the overall career coaching win also came vs. Irish joined Nebraska as the only teams in the top-30 of last week’s NCAA rankings Georgetown, on March 29, 2003, at Eck for team batting avg. (26th), ERA (13th) and fielding pct. (20th) ... a win in the opener Stadium (13-3). vs. RU placed ND at 30 wins (30-8) quicker than all but the ’04 (30-5) and ’01 (30-5-1) teams ... ND’s 10 regular position players are a veteran group, combining for 1,175 VETERAN UNIT – Notre Dame’s 2006 career starts ... the Irish are outhitting opponents .359-.234 in the win streak (2.94 opening-day lineup included six seniors, a staff ERA, .973 fielding pct./23 Es) ... ND is 21-1 in its past 22 games vs. BIG EAST junior and two sophomores ... it marks just teams ... ND set an Eck Stadium record for tickets sold (3,052 and then 3,101) on both days of the SJU series (also in earlier game vs. Pitt/3,028), then 3,507 in the opener the third time in the 12-year Paul Mainieri vs. Rutgers (plus more than 3,200 in the other games vs. RU) ... the Irish are 18-1 era (and only second time since his first at home and riding a 30-3 overall extended streak this season ... ND had totaled just season at ND, in ’95) that the Irish have 11 HRs in its first 30 games but has 15 HRs in the current homestand (10 GP) ... the not featured at least one freshman posi- current 3.33staff ERA would rank 2nd-best by an ND staff since ’92 ... Paul Mainieri tion starter from the start (although fresh- is 520-204-2 at ND, 851-483-3 overall in 24 seasons ... the Mainieri era has included man Jeremy Barnes has emerged as a an average of 44-plus wins per season, eight trips to the NCAAs, eight conference starter at multiple positions in ’06): titles, 43 players who have been drafted or signed as free-agents, 12 All-America seasons and nine Academic All-America honors (all 63 of his four-year players have Notre Dame Freshman Starters graduated) ... the Irish staff has allowed just eight home runs all season and recently in the Paul Mainieri Era went 25 games (943 batters faced) without allowing a HR ... ND rapped out 49 hits ’95 – no freshman starters in its sweep at USF, the most hits for the Irish in a BIG EAST series since 50 vs. ’96 – Jeff Wagner (C) and Paul Turco (SS) Georgetown in ’98 ... ND’s 40 games this season have featured 35 different batting ’97 – Brant Ust (2B) and Jeff Felker (1B), orders ... the Irish own a 48-21 scoring edge in the 1st inning this season, outhitting Jeff Perconte (RF platoon) the opponents .384-.305 in the opening inning. ’98 – Alec Porzel (LF) MILESTONE MARKERS – The following individuals are approaching (or recently ’99 – Steve Stanley (CF), Paul O’Toole (C) reached) statistical milestones in their Notre Dame careers: and Andrew Bushey (3B) ’00 – Brian Stavisky (RF) Jeff Samardzija ...... 199.1 innings Craig Cooper ...... 198 GP, 44 SB, 44 2B, 94 BB ’01 – Steve Sollmann (2B) Sean Gaston ...... 98 hits ’02 – Matt Macri (SS, injured) Tom Thornton ...... 48 GS, 188 Ks, 301.2 IP ’03 – Craig Cooper (LF), Cody Rizzo (RF), Brett Lilley ...... 97 GP Greg Lopez (3B), Steve Andres (DH) Alex Nettey ...... 97 runs ’04 – none Danny Dressman ...... 97 hits ’05 – Brett Lilley (2B/3B), Ross Brezovsky (3B/2B) Greg Lopez ...... 196 GS, 205 hits, 209 GP ’06 – none (Jeremy Barnes now 28 GS) Matt Bransfield ...... 96 runs Steve Andres ...... 95 runs, 92 walks, 89 RBI LOPEZ JOINS WEEKLY DIARY STAFF Wade Korpi ...... 90 strikeouts FOR COLLEGE BASEBALL INSIDER Cody Rizzo ...... 190 GS, 180 hits Notre Dame senior shortstop and second- Ross Brezovsky ...... 84 hits Jeff Manship ...... 81 strikeouts year captain Greg Lopez is one of four Paul Mainieri ...... 520 wins (at ND) players in all of Division I baseball who will be featured this season during a weekly Here’s a look at Notre Dame’s record in various situations: diary feature on www.collegebaseballin- ND scores in 1st inning ...... 18-4 sider.com ... check the CBI website and Opponent scores in 1st inning ...... 9-2 look for more on this diary series at und. ND scores first ...... 21-4 com. ND leads after 7th inning ...... 29-1 ND hits a home run ...... 16-1 LANGFORD LOST FOR SEASON Opponent hits a home run ...... 5-3 AFTER ELBOW SURGERY ND does not make an error ...... 10-1 Notre Dame sophomore Tony Langford ND outhits the opponent ...... 27-3 ND is outhit by the opponent ...... 3-5 – who was poised to be a valuable two- When collecting double-digit hits ...... 19-2 way player for the Irish in 2005 – will be When allowing 0-5 runs ...... 27-3 lost for the season after undergoing recon- One-run games ...... 4-2 structive “Tommy John” elbow surgery on Extra-inning games ...... 1-2 Feb. 22 ... Langford was in line to be on the top late-game righthanded relievers for AWESOME IN APRIL – ND has won just 67% of its pre-April games in the 12-year the Irish and also figured heavily in the Paul Mainieri era (182-90-1/+92; .669) but now has won 82% of its April games in mix as a righthanded-hitting DH. those 12 seasons (231-51-1/+180; .818). – Senior 1B Craig Cooper shifted SCHEDULE CHANGES – There have TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADOFF (MAN) been several minor changes to the Notre into the leadoff spot starting with the Texas A&M game (that opened the Dame 2006 baseball schedule, since its Spring Break trip) and responded with a nine-game hit streak that ended initial release on Dec. 10: in an 0-for-1 game vs. Central Michigan (3 BB, SF) ... Cooper has reached base on 23-of-31 first-inning plate appearances since taking over the lead- • Two home games have shifted their start off spot (8 singles, 6 doubles, 4 walks, 4 home runs, HBP) ... he also has times – April 22 vs. Rutgers at 3:05 and reached on a team-best 62% of his overall plate appearances when leading April 25 vs. Purdue at 7:05 (live ESPN-U off any inning (34-of-55) ... Cooper’s move to the leadoff spot has sparked telecast) – while the April 13 doubleheader ND’s 30-3 record during the past seven weeks. vs. St. John’s was telecast live by CSTV (with live streaming on und.com). BACK-TO-BACK BATTING TITLES FOR COOPER – Current senior 1B • The BIG EAST also has announced that Craig Cooper ended up batting .403 in 2005 BIG EAST games, placing him the eight-team conference tournament will 16 points ahead of second-place finishers Doug Nelms of West Virginia and be held in the new venue of Bright House Dan McDonald of Seton Hall (both hit .386) ... Cooper also led the league Networks Field (Clearwater, Fla.), the Phil- in batting as a sophomore (.470, in ’04) and joined former Boston College adelphia Phillies spring-training site and player Kevin Penwell (’95 and ’96) as the only repeat batting champions in home field for their single-A affiliate. the 21-year history of BIG EAST baseball ... he now is making a bid for an unprecedented third BIG EAST batting title, currently leading the conference • Also of note is the fact that South Bend/ with a .517 avg. in BIG EAST games (30-for-58). Notre Dame now observes Eastern time (including DST) all year-round ... that’s a ONE OF THE BEST THERE EVER WAS – Craig Cooper’s late-season switch from past years when South Bend surge in 2005 moved him into third place on the list for career batting aver- residents never changed their clocks (and age in BIG EAST games, entering 2006 at .420 (68-for-162) – now up to were on EST year-round) ... thus, South .445 (98-for-220, with a BIG EAST-leading .517/30-for-58 in ’06) ... the top Bend no longer will be on the equivalent of career hitters players in BIG EAST history (currenty in the record book) are Central time from April trough October, as former Seton Hall standout Marteese Robinson (.432, 93-for-192; ’85-’87) it has been in recent years (South Bend’s and Rutgers player Joe Cirone (.443, 51-for-115; ’97-’00) ... Cooper could time zone now will be aligned with the east join Cirone as the only players in the past 18 seasons to hit .420 or higher in coast all 12 months). their BIG EAST careers ... Robinson currently is the director of scouting for the St. Louis Cardinals. NEW FORMAT – Most BIG EAST series in 2006 have shifted to a three-day format (typi- cally Fri.-Sat.-Sun.) ... all BIG EAST games will Longest Single-Season Win Streaks in Notre Dame History be nine innings, except in the instance where 22 2006 (March 25 – present) ... overall record was 21 from 1906-07 a doubleheader must be played on Sunday ... 18 1991 (April 7-28, 1991) there also no longer is the option to use Mon- 17 2003 (March 24 – April 14) day as a makeup day for a weekend series. 17 1907 (April 20 – May 21) 16 2002 (April 11 – May 4) ND BASEBALL AND ECK STADIUM FEA- 16 2001 (April 4-25) TURED IN EA SPORTS GAME – The Notre 16 1988 (April 24 – May 20) Dame baseball program and Eck Stadium are 15 1910 (May 4 – June 7) prominent elements in the newly-relesed EA Sports home video game MVP 06 NCAA Base- SILVER STREAKS – Notre Dame now has totaled 11 double-digit win ball ... the revolutionary game features Notre Dame and 127 other Division I teams while Eck streaks in the Paul Mainieri era ... all but three (1997, 2000, ’05) of the 12 Stadium is one of 19 stadiums featured in the Mainieri-era seasons have featured at least one double-digit winning streak popular new release ... EA Sports – the mak- (with two in both ’98 and ’04) ... the current 22-game win streak began on ers of the highest-rated and top-selling base- March 25, within a day of the starting point in four of the 10 previous double- ball game of the past three years – has cre- digit streaks (March 24 in ’96, ’03 and ’04; March 26 in ’98): ated a completely new baseball experience: MVP 06 NCAA® Baseball. Inspired by the spirit Double-Digit Win Streaks in the Mainieri Era and emotion of collegiate athletics, MVP 06 22 2006 (March 25 – present) NCAA Baseball is the first-ever college base- 17 2003 (March 24 – April 14); 3rd-longest in ND history (18, in ’91) ball game. 16 2002 (April 11 – May 4); tied for 4th-longest in ND history LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON – Six current Irish 16 2001 (April 4-25); tied for 4th-longest in ND history players are second-generation college baseball 13 1998 (April 8-23) players: senior IF Eddie Smith (Ed Smith, Gon- 12 2004 (April 29 – May-21) zaga), junior LHP/1B Mike Dury (John Dury, 11 2004 (March 24 – April 7) ... 1995 (April 13-23) N.C. State), junior RHP Jeff Manship (John 10 1999 (March 10-28) ... 1998 (March 26 – April 4) ... Manship, Arizona), freshman IF Evan Sharp- 1996 (March 24 – April 6) ley (Tom Sharpley, Spring Arbor) and freshman C Mike Many (Bob Many, Northern Illinois). VETERAN LINEUP Avg GP/GS AB R H 2B/3B/HR RBI SLG% BB HBP SO OB% SH SB E

Cody Rizzo (Sr., RF/C) .278 210/190 648 157 180 31/3/17 121 .414 49 77 118 .390 6 32-44 19 Greg Lopez (Sr., SS) .306 209/196 670 116 205 27/2/4 125 .370 35 33 106 .362 30 7-15 57 Craig Cooper (Sr., 1B) .355 198/169 642 162 228 44/5/26 151 .561 94 25 77 .453 10 44-61 8 Matt Bransfield (Sr., LF) .320 161/137 510 96 163 36/4/17 116 .506 47 22 90 .393 8 5-9 4 Alex Nettey (Sr., CF) .273 156/112 422 97 115 18/2/4 48 .353 29 38 56 .371 18 21-31 6 Danny Dressman (Jr., OF) .315 117/72 308 65 97 15/3/0 56 .383 45 5 45 .408 20 8-16 2 Sean Gaston (Jr., C) .303 108/84 323 56 98 14/2/2 60 .378 25 4 33 .353 10 10-12 6 Brett Lilley (So., 3B) .353 97/97 334 80 118 9/0/0 46 .383 51 40 45 .487 17 13-25 19 Ross Brezovsky (So., 2B) .276 90/87 304 58 84 14/4/4 47 .388 32 8 59 .354 9 5-7 20 Jeremy Barnes (Fr., IF) .279 35/32 136 26 38 8/1/1 25 .375 20 3 20 .381 2 6-9 4 TOTALS .308 1,381/1,175 4,297 913 1,325 216/26/76 795 .416 428 255 650 .393 130 151-229 147

OUTFIELD OLD-TIMERS – Notre Dame’s current four veteran outfielders NOTRE DAME BASEBALL – the senior trio of LF Steve Andres, CF Alex Nettey and RF Cody Rizzo, plus junior Danny Dressman – have combined to make 379 outfield starts 2006 QUICK FACTS in their Notre Dame careers ... that total does not include the 115 career out- Location ...... Notre Dame, IN 46556 field starts by senior Craig Cooper (who has shifted to first base in 2006) or Founded ...... 1842 the 30 LF starts this season by senior Matt Bransfield, who served mostly First Season of Baseball ...... 1892 as a DH in 2003-06): Undergraduate Enrollment ...... 8,311 Career OF Starts LF CF RF Total Cody Rizzo 13 33 105 151 Nickname ...... Fighting Irish Craig Cooper (1B in ’06) 50 8 57 115 Alex Nettey 4 101 2 107 Colors ...... Gold and Blue Steve Andres 60 0 2 62 Conference ...... BIG EAST Danny Dressman 10 31 18 59 Athletic Director ...... Kevin White Totals 137 173 184 494 Stadium (cap.) ...... Eck Stadium (2,500) IRISH QUICK NOTES – Craig Cooper and Brett Lilley both hit 9-for-13 in Surface, Dim...... Grass, 331-401--331 the 3-0 sweep at South Florida ... ND’s recent streak of nine straight games with double-digit hits is unmatched in the program’s recorded history ... the Head Coach ....Paul Mainieri (Fla. Int’l ’80) ND staff’s streak of not allowing a home run ended in the Sunday game at Career Record .... 829-482-3 (24th season) USF (first vs. the Irish in 25 games and 943 batters faced) ... ND rapped out 49 hits in the sweep at USF, the most hits for the Irish in a BIG EAST series Record at ND ...... 498-203-2 (12th season) since 50 vs. Georgetown in ‘98 ... ND outhit USF .409-.231 in the series ... ND matched the seventh-best 30-game start (22-8) in the 114-year history Asst. Coach .... Terry Rooney (Radford ’96) of the program ... ND reccently had 15-plus hits in four straight games for Asst. Coach ...... Cliff Godwin (ECU ’01) the first time since 1988 ... the ND defense remains on pace to set the team Vol. Asst. ...John Gumpf (CS San Bernadino ’97) record in fielding pct. (.972; 44 Es), with the 10 regular starters combining for just 30 Es at their normal positions (SS Greg Lopez has just 6 Es) ... the Letterwinners Ret./Lost ...... 21/7 games at USF marked the eighth time that ND has swept a 3-game road Position Starters Ret./Lost ...... 8/1 series in 11 BIG EAST seasons ... ND has trailed just 14 times in the win Letterwinning Pitchers Ret./Lost ...... 10/5 streak, with seven of those deficits each lasting a half-inning, three lasting Total Returners .... 21 (13 pos./10 pitchers) 1.5 (only two have gone longer than 3.5 innings, none longer than 4.5) ... ND is 21-1 in its past 22 overall games vs. the BIG EAST ... Kyle Weiland Newcomers...... 11 (10-of-11) already has bested Aaron Heilman’s ND record for saves by a freshman (9, in ’98) ... ND sold an Eck Stadium record 3,028 tickets for 2005 Record ...... 38-24-1 the Friday-night game vs. Pittsburgh – then bested that with 3,052 for the 2004 BIG EAST Record/Finish ..14-9-1/3rd St. John’s doubleheader and 3,101 for the third game of the SJU series Postseason ..... 2-2 NCAA Gainesville Reg. (capped by 3,507 in the opener vs. Rutgers, then more than 3,200 in both the second and third games of that series) ... the opener vs. Pitt saw the ND Baseball SID Contact ...... Pete LaFleur staff’s shutout streak end at 22 innings (first earned run allowed in 33 IP) ... Sports Information Office ...(574) 631-7516 Paul Mainieri is 520-204-2 at ND, 851-483-3 overall in 24 seasons ... the 15- LaFleur’s E-mail ...... lafl[email protected] 1 win over Oakland included 4 HRs (Matt Bransfield 2, Sean Gaston, Alex Sports Information Fax ..... (574) 631-7941 Nettey) and a 9-run bottom of the 4th that was ND’s most runs in an inning since scoring 10 in the 1st inning at UConn on May 10, 2004 (matched by ND Sports Hotline ...... (574) 631-3000 a a 9-run explosion in the 6th inning of game-2 vs. Rutgers ... ND recently ______Website ...... www.und.com matched its season-high hit total (17) in three straight games. HBP HIGHWAY RETURNS – The ND batters were hit-by-pitch just six times NOTRE DAME BASEBALL in the first seven games of the 2006 season but now are averaging nearly 2006 ROSTER BREAKDOWN 1.6 HBPs per game (65 in 40 GP) ... senior CF Alex Nettey leads all BIG EAST players with 19 HBPs (5th in ND history; with his 38 career HBPs now Position Starters Returning (Avg/HR/RBI) 3rdall-time among ND players) ... senior RF/C Cody Rizzo (7 HBP in ’06) 1B – Craig Cooper (Sr.; .325/7/58; 14 SB) ranks 3rd in NCAA history with 77 career HBPs ... sophomore 3B Brett Lilley 3B – Brett Lilley* (So.; .355/0/28; 30 HBP) (10 HBP in ’06) already is 2nd in ND history with 40 career HBPs ... senior SS – Greg Lopez (Sr.; .274/2/34; 7 SAC) SS Greg Lopez (32) and senior 1B Craig Cooper (25) rank 7th and 12th on C – Sean Gaston* (Jr.; .293/1/28; 27 R) the ND career HBP list. RF – Cody Rizzo (Sr.; .252/6/24; 17 SB) LF – Matt Bransfield (Sr.; .313/0/16; 6 2B) NCAA RECORD BOOK CAREER HIT-BY-PITCH CF – Alex Nettey (Sr.; .288/2/24; 44 R) 1. 92 – Tony Hurtado (San Fran.; ’97-’00); 221 GP (2.40 gms/HBP) 2B – Ross Brezovsky* (So.; .261/2/20; 35 R) 2. 81 – Gabe Somarriba (FL Atlantic; ’99-’02); 226 GP (2.79 gms/HBP) DH/LF – Steve Andres* (Sr.; .232/5/25; 21 BB) 3. 77* – Cody Rizzo (Notre Dame; ’03- ); 210 GP (2.73 gms/HBP) 4. 74 – Jeff Ontiveros (Texas; 1999-2002); 258 GP (3.49 gms/HBP) Position Starter Lost (Avg/HR/RBI) 1B – Matt Edwards (.353/14/68; 21 2B, 46 BB) NCAA RECORD BOOK PLAYER SEASON HIT-BY-PITCH 1. 33 ...... Andrew Slater (Richmond, ’97) * Notes: stats for ’05 season ... asterisks in- 2. 32 ...... Gary Morris (Elon, ’05) dicate lefthanded hitters ... no other position 32 ...... Steve Dembrowski (F. Dickinson, ’79) players lost from the 2005 team that had more 4. 30 ...... Brett Lilley (Notre Dame, ’05) than 5 at-bats ... Cooper started in the outfield 5. 29 ...... Ryder Mathias (Wake Forest, ’05) during the 2003-05 seasons ... Bransfield was 29 ...... Chris Nelson (Southern Utah, ’02) injured for part of ’05 and previously has been 29 ...... Jonah Martin (Arizona State, ’00) a DH and reserve catcher with the Irish. 29 ...... Corky Miller (Nevada, ’98) 10. 28 ...... Cody Rizzo (Notre Dame, ’03) Top Returning Pitchers (’05 stats) Note: Lilley and Rizzo are the only players from the same school on the Tom Thornton* (Sr.; 4.69 ERA, 6-6, 40 Ks) above top-10 list (28-plus HBPs in a season) Jeff Samardzija (Jr.; 3.89 ERA, 8-1, 56 Ks) Jeff Manship (Jr.; 3.97 ERA, 2-1, SV, 20 Ks) NCAA RECORD BOOK TEAM SEASON HIT-BY-PITCH Mike Dury* (Jr.; 1.38 ERA, 1-0, 2 SV, 17 Ks) Team Yr. Gms HBP (per gm) Wade Korpi* (So.; 5.47 ERA, 4-3, 32 Ks) 1. Notre Dame ’05 63 130 (2.06) 2. Nevada ’97 60 125 (2.08) Top Pitcher Lost (’05 stats) 3. Long Beach St. ’98 67 124 (1.85) Ryan Doherty (3.79 ERA, 1-3, 7 SV, 44 Ks) Coll. Charleston ’04 63 122 (1.94) * Note: asterisks indicate LHPs 5. Cal St. Fullerton ’03 66 117 (1.77) 6. Arizona State ’00 59 115 (1.95) Key Freshmen (stats for 2005) Long Beach St. ’99 60 114 (1.90) Kyle Weiland (RHP; Albuquerque, NM) 8. Notre Dame ’04 63 106 (1.68) First team all-state – Notre Dame ’06 40 65 (1.63) (5.20 ERA, 4-1, 2 SV, 53 Ks, 19 BB, 35 IP) Notes: ND is on pace for 104 HBPs this season (in 64 GP) ... the Irish have av- Jeremy Barnes (RHP/IF; Garland, TX) eraged 1.81 HBPs per game during the past three seasons (301, in 166 games All-state shortstop from ’04-’06) ... the 2005 Notre Dame team owns the 2nd-best HBP per game (.430, 4 HR ... team-record 1.31 ERA in ’04) among teams on the above list ... ND (106 in ’04; 130 in ’05) and Long Beach State (124 in ’98, 114 in ’99) are the only teams ever to post 106-plus HBPs David Phelps (RHP; Hazelwood, MO) in multiple seasons. First team all-state Notre Dame Career Hit-By-Pitch (1.56 ERA, 6-2, 88 Ks, 18 BB, 25 H, 54 IP) 1. Cody Rizzo (2003- ) ...... 77 2. Brett Lilley (2005- ) ...... 40 Sam Elam (LHP; Mesquite, TX) 3. Alex Nettey (2003- ) ...... 38 Led team to regional championship Craig DeSensi (1992-95) ...... 38 (2.50 ERA, 9-3, 72 Ks, 35 IP) 5. Dan Bautch (1990-92) ...... 36 Greg Layson (1991-94) ...... 36 Eddy Mendiola (3B/C; Miami, FL) 7. Greg Lopez (2003- ) ...... 32 All-country honors Ed Lund (1988-90) ...... 32 (.390, 3 HR, 6 2B, 14 RBI, 20 BB, 14 SB) Eric Danapilis (1990-93) ...... 32 10. Paul O’Toole (1999-2002) ...... 28 11. Javi Sanchez (2001-04) ...... 27 12. Craig Cooper (2003- ) ...... 25 FIRST-INNING FOCUS – Notre Dame’s impressive 1st-inning stats this sea- MANSHIP, SAMARDZIJA son include a 48-21 scoring margin, with 1st-inning runs in 22 games ... the AMONG NATION’S TOP PROSPECTS Irish recently had a 7-game scoring streak in the 1st inning, longest by an ND team in the past five seasons (the 2004 team scored in the 1st inning of six • Baseball America released its annual straight games, the ’05 team in five straight) ... ND is batting a robust .384 as preseason list of college baseball’s top- a team in the 1st inning this season (21 extra-base hits, 7 HRs), led by: 100 prospects for the 2006 Major League baseball draft and Notre Dame was one Craig Cooper ...... 679 (19-for-28) .....5 RBI, 17 R, 4 HR, 6 2B, 1.321 slug. of six teams in the nation to feature two 5 BB, HBP, 2 KS, SF, .714 on-base Sean Gaston ...... 584 (7-for-12) ...... 8 RBI, 4 R, HR, 3B, 2B, 2 BB, K, SF starting pitchers among those top-100 Matt Bransfield ...... 438 (7-for-16) ...... 9 RBI, 2 R, 2 HR, 2B, 3 BB, HBP, 4 K, SAC prospects – as Jeff Manship was slot- ted at No. 75 on that list (now #41) while STRONG STARTERS – The ND pitchers have posted a scoreless first in- fellow junior righthander Jeff Samardzija ning in 29 of 40 games this season. was listed 94th (now 40th) ... the other teams with two starting pitchers among JUMPING ON TOP – Notre Dame’s best 1st-inning scoring margin of the the preseason top-100 prospects were Mainieri era (since ’95) came in 2001 (+48; 59-11) ... the recent streak of UNC, Missouri, Cal Poly, Washington and scoring 1st-inning runs in seven straight games (March 21-29) was longest San Diego (ND, UNC and Missouri are the by an ND team since that 2001 team scored in eight straight, from April 21- only ones currently with two starting pitch- 29 of that season ... ND’s current +27 scoring margin in the 1st inning (43- ers among the top-50 prospects). 14) is triple that of the ’05 team (+9; 58-49) and would rank 5th-best by an • BA’s college preview listed ND senior Irish team in the Mainieri era (on pace for +43, which would challenge the 1B Craig Cooper and sophomore B Brett 2001 team’s +48 as best in the Mainieri era) ... the current 1st-inning scor- Lilley on its preseason all-BIG EAST ing ratio of 2.3 rankes 4th in Mainieri’s 12 seasons ... ND has finished with team ... BA cited Lilley, senior SS Greg a positive 1st-inning scoring margin every season of the Mainieri era except Lopez and junior catcher Sean Gaston 1998 (-12), with an average margin of +18 and avg. ratio of 1.9 ... the most as the BIG EAST’s best defensive play- 1st-inning runs ever scored by a Mainieri-ea offense at ND are 75 (in ’04; ers at their positions while tabbing Lilley 1.19/gm) while the fewest allowed are 11 (in ’01; 0.18/gm) ... ND’s current as the BIG EAST batter with the “best averages are 1.20 runs/gm and 0.53 runs allowed/gm in the 1st ... here’s a strike-zone discipline,” Samardzija as the look at the Mainieri-era teams and their 1st-inning production: BIG EAST’s best athlete, Manship as the league’s pitcher with the best breaking 1st-Inn. ball and senior LHP Tom Thornton as the Year Runs Margin Ratio Final Record BIG EAST pitcher with the best control. 1995 65-27 +38 2.4 40-21 1996 70-37 +33 1.9 44-18 • BA’s prospect rankings listed Manship 1997 65-60 +5 1.3 41-19 4th and Samardzija 6th among the BIG 1998 29-41 -12 0.7 41-18 EAST’s top prospects (Cooper was 44th 1999 50-45 +5 1.1 43-18 among the nation’s top senior prospects). 2000 35-32 +3 1.1 46-18 2001 59-11 +48 5.4 49-13-1 LIDGE NAMED TO WBC TEAM – For- 2002 65-49 +16 1.3 50-18 mer Notre Dame ace pitcher and current 2003 40-35 +5 1.1 45-18 Houston Astros all-star closer Brad Lidge 2004 75-29 +46 2.6 51-12 (’96-’98) was one of 16 college baseball 2005 58-49 +9 1.2 38-14-1 products named to the United States 2006 48-21 +27 2.3 (32-8) original 30-man roster for the World Base- Avg. +18 1.9 ball Classic, a 16-nation tournament held March 3-20 in Japan, Puerto Rico and the IS THE EIGHTH ENOUGH? – The Irish have put away several games this U.S. ... former Notre Dame standout and season in the 8th, owning a 37-22 scoring edge in the inning (+15) ... ND current Arizona Diamondbacks infielder is batting .371 (63-for-170) in the 8th inning this season, with a .453 team Craig Counsell (’92) was not named to the slugging pct. in the inning (HR, 2 3B, 7 2B) and a .450 on-base pct. (19 BB, team but is one of 22 players who remain 8 HBP) ... seven ND regulars are batting above .370 in the 8th inning this on the provisional roster – with the official season: U.S. 30-man roster not to be submitted to WBC organizers until March 2 ... all 10 of Greg Lopez ...... 643 (9-for-14) ...... 4 RBI, 4 R, 2B, SF, GDP the relief pitchers originally named to the Craig Cooper ...... 500 (7-for-14) ...... 3 RBI, 5 R, 2 HBP Danny Dressman ...... 450 (9-for-20) ...... 2 RBI, 9 R, 2 3B, 2B, 6 BB, 2 Ks, GDP team are former college baseball players, Brett Lilley ...... 385 (5-for-13) ...... 2 RBI, R, 2B, 4 BB, HBP, 2 K, SAC, GDP as is Astros starting pitcher Roger Clem- Alex Nettey ...... 385 (5-for-13) ...... 3 RBI, 3 R, 3 HBP, 2 Ks ens (Texas) and five position players ... Jeremy Barnes ...... 387 (6-for-16) ...... 4 RBI, 5 R, 2 2B, 2 BB, 2 Ks Lidge saved the 2-0 win over Canada and was the pitcher of record in the 4-3 win over eventual champion Japan. CLUTCH HITTING KEY COMPONENT – Three stats that measure clutch FAR & WIDE – Notre Dame’s nine posi- offensive production – leadoff on-base pct., batting with runners in scoring tion player starters hail from seven states, position and 2-out batting – show that clutch hitting can overcome a team’s including two outfielders from California dropoff in power numbers ... using a formula that combines those three sit- (senior LF/DH Steve Andres and RF Cody uational hitting numbers, Brett Lilley was the 2005 team’s runaway team Rizzo) and two leftside infielders from Ohio leader with a “clutch hitting” score of 1.402 ... that number can be skewed a (senior SS Greg Lopez and sophomore 3B bit by the on-base pct. (which has the benefit of including walks and HBPs Brett Lilley), plus one each from New York and thus is higher than the batting avg. stats) ... using an adjustment where- (senior 1B Craig Cooper), Colorado (se- by the leadoff on-base pct. is multiplied by 75%, Lilley still checked in as nior LF/DH Matt Bransfield), Indiana (ju- ND’s all-around leader in 2005 clutch hitting with a 1.273 score (.515 leadoff nior C Sean Gaston), Florida (sophomore on-base/.386 adjusted, .448 RISP, .439 with 2-outs) ... Lilley led the ’05 team 3B Ross Brezovsky) and Illinois (senior in 2-out batting and batting with RISP while ranking 3rd in leadoff OB (better CF Alex Nettey) than his overall team-leading .502 OB pct.) ... current senior 1B Craig Coo-

per was 2nd overall with a 1.117 clutch-hitting score in ’05 that included the STATE ROLL CALL – The Notre Dame team’s 2nd-best batting averages with 2 outs (.439) and with runners in scor- list of all-time monogram winners includes ing position (.448) ... as a team, the most consistent part of ND’s 2005 clutch players from 44 home states ... pitchers offense was leadoff on-base pct. (.406/.311 adjusted), followed by batting Brandon Viloria (Wailuku, Hawaii) in 2000 with RISP (.309) while the 2-out batting lagged behind at .294 ... the 2005 and Cody Wilkins (Hudson, N.C.) in 2004 team’s overall clutch-hitting score was 908 but the 2006 team has gone well became the first players from their respec- beyond that, checking in at 983 thanks to a big jump in leadoff on-base pct. tive states ever to monogram with the Irish (.406 to .440) and batting with runners in scoring position (.309 to .351) ... baseball program ... the only states that junior OF Danny Dressman leads the team with a 1.178 clutch-hitting score have not produced ND baseball letterwin- – nearly double his 673 in ’05, with huge jumps in all three categories (up ners include Alaska, Idaho, Nevada, New 247 points in leadoff OB, 122 in batting with RISP and 191 in 2-out hitting) ... Hampshire, South Carolina and Vermont Cooper’s CH score (1,116) is nearly identical to his ’05 number but he has ... the 12-year Paul Mainieri era has fea- made nearly a 200-point jump in leadoff OB (.419 to .618) ... senior SS Greg tured players from 36 states, including 15 Lopez owns a 1,063 CH score that is 277 points higher than his 2005 mark, states on the 2006 roster (see list below): mostly due to a 181-point rise in his batting with RISP (team-best .423). Florida (4) – Ross Brezovsky (Naples), Wade Korpi (Lake Worth), Eddy Mendiola CLUTCH-HITTING CHART (pre-IPFW; team rank in parentheses) (Miami), Joey Williamson (Lantana) Leadoff On-Base Pct. Batting w/ 2-Out Clutch Indiana (4) – Mike Dury (Indianapolis), RISP Batting Hit Tot. Sean Gaston (Brownsburg), Jeff Samardzija Danny Dressman (4) .429 (.329 adjusted) (2) .408 (1) .441 1,178 (Valparaiso), John Seabaugh (Granger) (2005) (13) .182 (.137) (8) .286 (9) .250 673 Texas (4) – Jeremy Barnes (Garland), Sam elam (Mesquite), Tony Langford (Fort Craig Cooper (1) .618 (.468) .342 .306 1,116 Worth), Jeff Manship (San Antonio) (2005) (5) .419 (.314) (2) .434 (2) .369 1,117 California (3) – Steve Andres (Napa), Danny Greg Lopez .424 (.289) (1) .423 (3) .351 1,063 Dressman (San Jose), Cody Rizzo (Temecula) (2005) (8) .353 (.265) (10) .242 (7) .279 786 Illinois (3) – Brett Graffy (Homer Glen), Brett Lilley (5) .423 (.317) .350 (2) .394 1,061 Mike Many (Naperville), Alex Nettey (Dolton) (2005) (3) .515 (.386) (1) .448 (1) .439 1,273 Michigan (2) – Dan Kapala (Royal Oak), Matt Bransfield .382 (.292) (5) .357 (4) .333 982 Evan Sharpley (Marshall) (2005) (2) .542 (.407) (6) .314 (6) .286 1,007 New York (2) – Ryan Connolly (Bingham- Cody Rizzo .375 (.273) (3) .380 .279 932 ton), Craig Cooper (Plainview) (2005) (4) .436 (.327) (12) .190 (10) .246 763 Ohio (2) – Brett Lilley (North Canton), Greg Lopez (Upper Arlington) Sean Gaston (5) .429 (.318) .306 .286 910 Washington (2) – David Gruener (Gig Har- (2005) (7) .357 (.268) (4) .322 (5) .302 892 bor), Eddie Smith (Olympia) Jeremy Barnes (3) .438 (.334) (4) .368 .208 910 Colorado (1) – Matt Bransfield (Englewood) Ross Brezovsky .364 (.268) .298 (5) .324 890 Massachusetts (1) – (2005) (10) .298 (.224) (7) .288 (10) .246 758 Tom Thornton (Middleboro) Alex Nettey .417 (.287) .313 .268 868 Missouri (1) – David Phelps (Hazeltown) (2005) (6) .418 (.314) (9) .273 (12) .219 806 New Jersey (1) – Chris Soriano (Randolph) Steve Andres (2) .500 (.375) .105 .111 597 New Mexico (1) – Kyle Weiland (Albuquerque) (2005) (11) .286 (.215) (11) .220 (8) .275 710 Virginia (1) – Jess Stewart (Manassas) TEAM .440 (.330) .351 .302 983 (2005) .406 (.311) .309 .294 908 LORDS OF DISCIPLINE – The 2006 Notre Dame offense owns a +57 plate- Double-Digit Hit Streaks discipline ratio (walks + hit-by-pitch - strikeouts) that is more than triple the 2005 team’s PDR (+17) and is on pace for +91 over 64 games ... the Irish batters have in the Paul Mainieri era (since ’95) boosted their walks (3.5/gm in ’05 to 4.1/gm in ’06) while hitting at a .329 clip (34 21 – CRAIG COOPER (2006; Sr., 1B) points higher than in ’05) ... the ND offense also is averaging nearly one fewer 21 – Mike Amhein (1997; Sr., C) K per game this season (4.3) than in 2005 (5.2) ... the biggest improvements in PDR have been seen by junior OF Danny Dressman (up 25; from -6 to +19), 18 – Jeff Felker (1999; Jr., 1B) sophomore 2B Ross Brezovsky (22; from -20 to +2), senior SS Greg Lopez (19; 16 – Steve Stanley (2000; So., CF) from -17 to +2), senior CF Alex Nettey (16; from -2 to +14) and junior C Sean 15 – Alex Nettey (2005; Jr., CF) Gaston (15; from -7 to +8) ... Dressman is on pace to finish at +40 (well above 15 – Steve Sollmann (2003; Jr., 2B) Brett Lilley’s team-best +29 in 2005) while Brezovsky (+35), Lopez (+30), Nettey 15 – Jeff Wagner (1997; Sr., C/DH) (+26) and Gaston (+24) also are one pace for impressive final PDR numbers: 15 – Brant Ust (1997; Fr., 2B/SS) 14 – Steve Andres (2004; So., LF) PLATE-DISCIPLINE CHART 14 – Brian Stavisky (2000; Fr., RF) Plate Discipline 14 – Matt Nussbaum (1999; Jr., LF) Player Walks Hit-By-Pitch Strikeouts (BB+HBP-Ks) 13 – Craig Cooper (2005; Jr., LF) Danny Dressman (’06) 23 4 8 +19 13 – Steve Sollmann (2003; Jr., 2B) (2005) 5 1 12 -6 13 – Steve Stanley (2002; Sr., CF) ______13 – Andrew Bushey (2001; Jr., 3B) Craig Cooper (’06) 21 5 10 +16 13 – Allen Greene (1997; So., LF) (2005) 32 14 22 +24 12 – Javi Sanchez (2002; SS, So.) ______12 – Steve Stanley (1999; CF, Fr.) Brett Lilley (’06) 17 10 12 +15 (2005) 34 27 32 +29 12 – Jeff Wagner (1998; Jr., C) ______11 – Danny Dressman (2006; Jr., OF) Alex Nettey (’06) 8 19 13 +14 11 – Ross Brezovsky (2006; So., 2B) (2005) 13 14 29 -2 11 – Steve Stanley (2002; CF, Sr.) ______11 – Brian Stavisky (2002; Jr., LF) Sean Gaston (’06) 15 0 7 +8 11 – Allen Greene (1998; Jr., CF) (2005) 5 4 16 -7 11 – Scott Sollmann (1996; Jr., CF) ______10 – Matt Edwards (2005; Sr., 1B) Jeremy Barnes (’06) 20 3 20 +3 10 – Matt Macri (2004; Jr., 3B) ______10 – Matt Edwards (2004; Jr., 1B) Ross Brezovsky (’06) 15 4 17 +2 10 – Matt Edwards (2003; So., 3B) (2005) 16 4 40 -20 ______10 – Steve Stanley (2002; Sr., CF)

10 – Steve Sollmann (2002; So., 2B) Greg Lopez (’06) 6 4 8 +2 (2005) 10 16 43 -17 10 – Steve Stanley (2001; Jr., CF) ______10 – Ken Meyer (2001; Jr., DH) Steve Andres (’06) 8 2 13 -3 10 – Steve Sollmann (2001; Fr., 2B) (2005) 21 6 20 +7 10 – Steve Stanley (2000; So., CF) ______10 – Brian Stavisky (2000; Fr., RF) Cody Rizzo (’06) 12 7 20 -1 10 – Steve Stanley (1999; Fr., CF) (2005) 22 21 35 +8 ______10 – Brant Ust (1998; So., 3B) 10 – J.J. Brock (1997; Sr., 3B) Matt Bransfield (’06) 12 3 24 -9 10 – Randall Brooks (1996; Jr., 2B) (2005) 10 7 14 +3 ______10 – J.J. Brock (1996; Jr., 3B) TEAM TOTALS 165 65 173 +57 Most Double-Digit Hit Streaks (2005) 220 125 328 +17 in the Mainieri Era * Lilley, Cooper and Matt Edwards (+17) were a combined +70 in ’05 (rest of team -53) 8 – Steve Stanley 4 – Steve Sollmann IRISH POST 500th WIN OF MAINIERI ERA – The 6-3 win over Georgetown 3 – Brian Stavisky, Matt Edwards on March 26 was Paul Mainieri’s 500th victory in 11-plus seasons at ND (now 2 – Brant Ust, Allen Greene, 520-204-2/.718; 851-483-3/.638 in 24 overall seasons) ... the Mainieri era Jeff Wagner, J.J. Brock, Craig Cooper has included an average of 44-plus wins per season, eight trips to the NCAAs, eight conference titles, 43 players who have been drafted or signed as free- Note: Craig Cooper’s earlier 9-game hit- agents, 12 All-America seasons and nine Academic All-America honors (all 63 ting streak ended this season after going of his four-year players have graduated and 11 who signed professionally as 0-for-1 with 3 walks and a sac. fly vs. Cen- juniors have returned to complete or near completion of their undergraduate tral Michigan on March 22. requirements). NOTRE DAME BASEBALL 2006 STARTS – By Batting Order Opp. Leadoff 2-hole 3-hole Cleanup 5-hole 6-hole 7-hole 8-hole 9-hole Ind.St. Lilley Gaston Cooper Andres Lopez Bransfield Brezovsky Nettey Rizzo AFA Barnes Dressman Cooper Andres Lopez Bransfield Brezovsky Dury Rizzo MEM Nettey Lilley Cooper Bransfield Lopez Gaston Barnes Brezovsky Rizzo OKLA Nettey Lilley Andres Bransfield Gaston Lopez Brezovsky Dury Rizzo NEB Nettey Lilley Andres Bransfield Gaston Lopez Brezovsky Rizzo Dressman MINN Lilley Dressman Gaston Bransfield Andres Dury Brezovsky Lopez Nettey ARIZ Lilley Dressman Bransfield Nettey Barnes Mendiola Brezovsky Lopez Rizzo A&M Cooper Dressman Lilley Gaston Barnes Bransfield Brezovsky Nettey Lopez IOWA Cooper Dressman Lilley Bransfield Barnes Andres Nettey Lopez Rizzo ILL Cooper Dressman Lilley Gaston Barnes Andres Brezovsky Nettey Rizzo IOWA Cooper Dressman Lilley Gaston Barnes Bransfield Brezovsky Lopez Rizzo IOWA Cooper Dressman Lilley Barnes Gaston Bransfield Nettey Lopez Rizzo SIU Cooper Dressman Barnes Bransfield Gaston Nettey Brezovsky Lopez Rizzo IOWA Cooper Dressman Lilley Bransfield Brezovsky Nettey Sharpley Lopez Rizzo SIU Cooper Dressman Lilley Bransfield Gaston Brezovsky Nettey Lopez Rizzo Wr.St. Cooper Dressman Gaston Bransfield Brezovsky Nettey Lilley Lopez Rizzo CMU Cooper Lilley Barnes Gaston Bransfield Nettey Brezovsky Lopez Rizzo GU Cooper Lilley Dressman Gaston Bransfield Brezovsky Nettey Lopez Rizzo GU Barnes Lilley Barnes Gaston Bransfield Nettey Brezovsky Lopez Rizzo GU Cooper Lilley Dressman Barnes Bransfield Gaston Brezovsky Lopez Rizzo VALPO Lilley Dressman Barnes Bransfield Brezovsky Nettey Dury Lopez Rizzo WMU Cooper Lilley Barnes Dressman Brezovsky Bransfield Gaston Lopez Rizzo PITT Cooper Lilley Barnes Bransfield Dressman Nettey Gaston Lopez Rizzo PITT Cooper Lilley Barnes Dressman Brezovsky Bransfield Gaston Lopez Nettey PITT Cooper Dressman Barnes Bransfield Brezovsky Gaston Lilley Lopez Nettey Chi St. Cooper Dressman Barnes Gaston Brezovsky Andres Nettey Mendiola Rizzo BSU Cooper Dressman Barnes Bransfield Brezovsky Nettey Lilley Lopez Rizzo USF Cooper Lilley Dressman Barnes Brezovsky Bransfield Gaston Lopez Nettey USF Cooper Lilley Dressman Barnes Brezovsky Bransfield Gaston Lopez Rizzo USF Cooper Lilley Dressman Barnes Bransfield Brezovsky Nettey Lopez Rizzo OAK Cooper Dressman Barnes Brezovsky Bransfield Gaston Nettey Lopez Rizzo MAN Cooper Lilley Dressman Barnes Brezovsky Andres Dury Nettey Rizzo SJU Cooper Lilley Dressman Barnes Brezovsky Bransfield Gaston Lopez Nettey SJU Cooper Lilley Dressman Barnes Bransfield Gaston Nettey Lopez Rizzo SJU Cooper Lilley Dressman Barnes Bransfield Brezovsky Nettey Lopez Rizzo TOL Cooper Dressman Barnes Brezovsky Bransfield Gaston Nettey Lopez Rizzo IPFW Cooper Dressman Barnes Bransfield Lopez Gaston Nettey Mendiola Rizzo RU Cooper Lilley Dressman Barnes Brezovsky Bransfield Gaston Lopez Nettey RU Cooper Lilley Dressman Barnes Bransfield Brezovsky Nettey Lopez Rizzo RU Cooper Lilley Dressman Barnes Gaston Bransfield Nettey Lopez Rizzo Batting Order and Position Combination Notes • The first 32 games featured 32 different batting orders (now 35 in 40) ... ND is 28-3 with Cooper at leadoff spot (4-5 with others). • The top four spots thus far have included: four different leadoff batters (Brett Lilley, Jeremy Barnes, Alex Nettey and Craig Cooper) three players in the 2-hole (Sean Gaston, Danny Dressman and Lilley) seven in the ever-important #3 spot (Cooper, Steve Andres, Gaston, Matt Bransfield, Lilley, Barnes, Dressman) and seven cleanup batters as well (Andres, Bransfield, Nettey, Gaston, Barnes, Dressman and Ross Brezovsky) ... for comparison, ND’s entire ’05 season featured five leadoff batters, five in the 2-hole, just three who batted 3rd and seven at cleanup • The first 32 games featured 25 different position combinations (excluding pitchers). • 11 different ND players have hit as the DH this season: Steve Andres, Mike Dury, Jeremy Barnes, Eddy Mendiola, Brett Lilley, Sean Gason, Danny Dressman, Evan Sharpley, Ross Brezovsky, Matt Bransfield and Greg Lopez. • The Irish are 30-2 when Barnes has started, including a 19-0 combined record when he has started in the middle infield (10-0 at 2B, 4-0 at SS) or at third base (5-0), plus 2-1 with him at first base and 7-1 as the DH ... ND is 12-2 when Rizzo has started at catcher. NOTRE DAME BASEBALL 2006 STARTS – By Position Opp. Catcher 1st Base 2nd Base Shortstop 3rd Base Left Field Center Field Right Field DH Pitcher Ind.St. Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Rizzo Andres Thornton AFA Rizzo Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Barnes Bransfield Dressman Andres Dury Samardzija MEM Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Rizzo Barnes Korpi OKLA Gaston Dury Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Rizzo Andres Manship NEB Gaston Bransfield Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Dressman Nettey Rizzo Andres Thornton MINN Gaston Bransfield Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Dressman Nettey Andres Dury Samardzija ARIZ Rizzo Barnes Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Mendiola Manship A&M Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Barnes Samardzija IOWA Rizzo Cooper Barnes Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Andres Manship ILL Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Barnes Lilley Dressman Nettey Rizzo Andres Thornton IOWA Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Barnes Bransfield Dressman Rizzo Lilley Korpi IOWA Rizzo Cooper Barnes Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Gaston Samardzija SIU Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Barnes Bransfield Nettey Rizzo Dressman Manship IOWA Rizzo Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Sharpley Phelps SIU Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Rizzo Dressman Thornton Wr.St. Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Rizzo Dressman Korpi CMU Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Rizzo Barnes Phelps GU Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Rizzo Dressman Manship GU Rizzo Barnes Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Andres Samardzija GU Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Rizzo Dressman Barnes Thornton VALPO Rizzo Barnes Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Dury Gruener WMU Gaston Cooper Barnes Lopez Lilley Bransfield Rizzo Dressman Brezovsky Thornton PITT Gaston Cooper Barnes Lopez Lilley Dressman Nettey Rizzo Bransfield Samardzija PITT Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Barnes Manship PITT Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Barnes Thornton Chi St. Rizzo Cooper Brezovsky Barnes Mendiola Andres Nettey Dressman Gaston Gruener BSU Rizzo Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Barnes Korpi USF Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Barnes Samardzija USF Gaston Cooper Barnes Lopez Lilley Bransfield Rizzo Dressman Brezovsky Thornton USF Rizzo Cooper Brezovsky Barnes Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Lopez Manship OAK Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Barnes Dressman Nettey Rizzo Bransfield Korpi MAN Rizzo Cooper Brezovsky Barnes Lilley Andres Nettey Dressman Dury Phelps SJU Gaston Cooper Barnes Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Brezovsky Samardzija SJU Gaston Cooper Barnes Lopez Lilley Dressman Nettey Rizzo Bransfield Thornton SJU Rizzo Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Barnes Manship TOL Gaston Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Barnes Dressman Nettey Rizzo Bransfield Korpi IPFW Rizzo Cooper Barnes Lopez Mendiola Bransfield Nettey Dressman Gaston Gruener RU Gaston Cooper Barnes Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Brezovsky Samardzija RU Rizzo Cooper Brezovsky Lopez Lilley Bransfield Nettey Dressman Barnes Manship RU Gaston Cooper Barnes Lopez Lilley Dressman Nettey Rizzo Bransfield Thornton Player GS p c 1b 2b 3b ss lf cf rf of dh 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 4 Greg Lopez...... 37 . . . . . 36 . . . . 1 . . . . 4 2 . 30 1 12 Matt Bransfield.. 37 . . 2 . . . 30 . . . 5 . . 1 14 10 10 . . . 6 Danny Dressman... 36 ...... 8 2 22 . 4 . 19 13 2 1 . . . 1 16 Alex Nettey...... 35 ...... 35 . . . 3 . . 1 . 7 14 4 6 7 Ross Brezovsky... 34 . . . 30 ...... 4 . . . 2 13 5 12 1 . 9 Craig Cooper..... 34 . . 34 ...... 31 . 3 ...... 2 Brett Lilley..... 34 . . . . 33 . . . . . 1 4 20 7 . . . 3 . . 17 Cody Rizzo...... 33 . 14 . . . . . 3 16 ...... 1 32 20 Jeremy Barnes.... 32 . . 3 10 5 4 . . . . 10 2 . 12 12 5 . 1 . . 11 Sean Gaston...... 29 . 26 ...... 3 . 1 2 6 6 6 7 . . 36 Steve Andres..... 10 ...... 2 . 2 . 6 . . 2 3 1 4 . . . 44 Mike Dury...... 5 . . 1 ...... 4 . . . . . 1 2 2 . 14 Eddy Mendiola.... 3 . . . . 2 . . . . . 1 . . . . . 1 . 2 . HOMESTAND #1 STATS – ND hit .341 in the 7-0 homestand from March 28- ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE April 5, outscoring the opponents 45-20 (2 HR, 2 3B, 14 2B, 26 BB, 6 HBP, • The Notre Dame baseball team tradition- 23 Ks, 11 SB) ... top hitters in that first homestand included: ally has matched its stellar play on the field Danny Dressman ...... 565, 13-for-23, 2 RBI, 8 R, 2B, 5 BB, K, 2 SAC, 2 SB with strong performances in the classroom Craig Cooper ...... 500, 12-for-24, 4 RBI, 8 R, HR, 4 2B, 3 BB, 2 Ks, SB and that continued to be the case in the Ross Brezovsky ...... 421, 8-for-19, 7 RBI, 5 R, HR, 3B, 2B, 3 BB, K, SF, SB 2005 fall semester – as the 32 players Greg Lopez ...... 350, 7-for-20, 6 RBI, 3 R, 3B, HBO, 3 Ks, SAC, 2 SB combined for a 3.17 team GPA during the ... the ND staff turned in a 2.86 ERA during the first 7-0 homestand (63 Ks, semester. 18 BB, 45 H/.220, 6 HB, 4 WP in 63 IP) while the defense registered a .978 • The NCAA’s recently-released Gradua- team fielding pct. (8 Es). tion Success Rate (GSR) data also rein- forced the Notre Dame baseball program’s ND Baseball 2006 Summer-League Commitments (others TBA) elite academic standing, as the Irish were Brett Lilley (3B, So.) – Cape Cod League (Cotuit Kettleers) one of 17 teams among 268 in Division I – Joey Williamson (RHP, So.) – Alaska League (Anchorage Glacier Pilots) but one of only two teams from that group David Phelps (RHP, Fr.) – Alaska League (Mat-Su Miners; Palmer, AK) that also currently are in the national top- 25 polls – to compile a 100%t graduation David Gruener (LHP, So.) – Alaska League (Mat-Su Miners; Palmer, AK) rate, during a four-year sample of classes Ross Brezovsky (2B, So.) – Jayhawk League (Hays, KS, Larks) entering from 1995-98. Sam Elam (LHP, Fr.) – Jayhawk League (Hays, KS, Larks) • The Irish also own a 100% graduation Wade Korpi – Valley League (Staunton, VA, Braves) rate (63-of-63) among four-year players Kyle Weiland (RHP, Fr.) – Great Lakes League (Delaware, OH, Cows) throughout the tenure of head coach Paul Jeremy Barnes (IF/RHP, Fr.) – Great Lakes League (Delaware, OH, Cows) Mainieri (’95-present), with 12 others who Danny Dressman (OF, Jr.) – Northwoods League (Madison, WI, Mallards) signed professionally prior to their senior Jess Stewart (RHP, Jr.) – Coastal Plains League (Wilson, NC, Tobs) season returning to complete or near comp letion of their degree requirements. Brett Graffy (RHP, Fr.) – Central Illinois League (DuPage Dragons) Eddy Mendiola (3B/C, Fr.) – Florida Collegiate League • Twenty-one of the ND baseball players Ryan Connolly (OF, Fr.) – New York Collegiate League posted a GPA of 3.0-plus during the 2005 fall semester, with 11 checking in at 3.4 or Notre Dame Baseball 2005 Summer-League Statistics higher ... the ND players also have com- Sean Gaston (Cotuit Kettleers; Cape Cod League) – named to league all- bined for an impressive 3.10 cumulative star team, also named first team all-league and team MVP ... hit .298 with 12 team GPA over the course of their college RBI and .328 on-base pct. (4 extra-base hits) careers. Jeff Manship (Cotuit Kettleers; Cape Cod League) – his win in final week • Notre Dame boasts several strong Aca- clinched playoff spot (3-3, 2.88 ERA, 45 Ks, 15 BB, 44 H, 50 IP, 9 GS) demic All-America candidates in 2006, Craig Cooper (Brewster Whitecaps; Cape Cod League) – hit .217 with 11 R, most notably: senior LHP Tom Thornton 6 2B, 17 BB, 4 SB (3.54 cumulative GPA; double major in anthropology and film-television-and-the- Matt Bransfield (Mat-Su Miners; Alaska League) – named to league all-star ater), sophomore 3B Brett Lilley (3.64; team while leading team in slugging (.469) and doubles (12), ranking 2nd in accounting), senior SS Greg Lopez (3.39; RBI (23), and 3rd in both batting (.312) and on-base pct. (.409) pre-professional studies and anthropol- Cody Rizzo (Mat-Su Miners; Alaska League) – 2nd on team with 9 times hit- ogy), senior LF/DH Matt Bransfield (3.36; by-pitch (hit .188, 6 BB, HR, 12 R, 5 RBI) sociology), junior catcher Sean Gaston Alex Nettey (Fayetteville, NC, Swampdogs; Coastal Plains League) – hit .236 (3.36; political science and history) and as starting CF (3 BB, 9 HB, 8 R, 12 RBI, 8 SB) sophomore 2B Ross Brezovsky (3.26; Danny Dressman (Madison, WI Mallards; Northwoods League) – team’s top economics) ... Notre Dame’s unmatched defensive outfielder, making just one error in 54 GP (hit .297, 18 R, 17 RBI, Academic All-America history includes 20 3 2B, 12 BB, 6 SB) honorees since 1992. Ross Brezovsky (Hays, KS Larks; Jayhawk League) – hit .256 with 18 runs • The senior class led the way for the Irish scored (8 RBI, 3 2B, 15 BB, 12 K, 31 G) during the 2005 fall semester, averaging David Gruener (Hays, KS Larks; Jayhawk League) – had 9 starts in 11 ap- a 3.54 semester GPA that included seven pearances (5-2, 59 Ks, 23 BB, 44 H, 52 IP) players above a 3.4 and all eight posting a semester GPA of 3.05 or higher. Wade Korpi (Staunton, VA, Braves; Valley League) – wemt 3-3 with 4.67 ERA in 12 appearances (46 Ks, 34.2 IP, 4 GS,18 BB, 36 H, .265 opp. avg.) Joey Williamson (Luray, VA, Wranglers; Valley League) – posted 2.06 ERA, 3-0 record (9 GP/6 GS, 42 Ks, 20 BB, 26 H) Eddie Smith (DuPage Dragons; Central Illinois Collegiate League) – stole 4 bases on 5 attempts (.156, 8 R, 5 RBI, .315 OBP, .938 FLD) BULLPEN BOOST – Notre Dame lost two of its top relief pitchers (junior RHP Dan Kapala/shoulder and sophomore RHP Tony Langford/elbow) before the 2006 season even began but the Irish relievers have responded with a solid season that now includes a 3.52 bullpen ERA, a .249 opponent batting avg., a 2-to-1 K-to-walk ratio (101/50) and 10 more innings pitched (122.2) than hits allowed (113) ... the relievers have allowed nearly one-half (27-of-65; 37%) of inherited baserun- ners to score and have struggled vs. first batters faced, allowing a .343 batting avg. (24-for-70) with 15 runs scored, 6 walks and 4 hit-batters among those 88 first batters (14 Ks):

BULLPEN CHART (IRS indicates inherited runners scored; FB is first batter faced) Player ERA W-L APP SV IP H R/ER BB SO 2B 3B HR AB B/Avg WP HB IRS FB (H-AB) Gruener.... 2.25 0-0 7 0 8.0 5 2/2 3 6 1 1 0 29 .172 1 0 0-2 2-6, BB Phelps..... 2.45 1-0 5 0 7.1 6 6/5 5 9 1 0 0 28 .214 1 2 2-3 2-4, BB, R, K Graffy..... 2.61 1-0 5 0 10.1 9 3/3 2 3 1 1 0 36 .250 0 0 0-2 2-5, R Elam...... 2.70 0-0 8 0 10.0 6 4/3 6 15 1 0 0 36 .167 0 3 1-4 2-6, BB, HB, 3 R, K Dury...... 2.76 2-0 15 0 16.1 11 6/5 4 10 3 0 0 57 .193 1 2 5-17 2-10,BB,R,4K,SAC,SF Stewart.....3.00 4-1 14 1-1 30.0 34 15/10 8 18 5 1 1 119 .286 1 2 9-19 4-10, 2R, 2 SAC,SF Weiland.....3.04 2-3 18 10-11 26.2 24 11/9 14 23 1 1 1 95 .253 4 4 6-7 7-16, BB, HB, 4R, 2K Williamson. 7.82 0-0 15 0 12.2 15 16/11 6 15 2 0 1 48 .313 1 4 3-11 2-12, BB,2HB,3R,6K Korpi...... 20.25 0-0 1 0 1.1 3 3/3 2 2 1 0 0 6 .500 1 0 1-1 1-1 Totals...... 3.52 10-4 88 11-12 122.2 113 65/48 50 101 16 4 3 454 .249 10 19 27-65 24-70/.343, 15 R (42%) 6 BB, 4 HB, 14 K IRS Pct.: Dury 29%, Stewart 47%, Weiland 86%, Williamson 27% First Batter Batting Avg.: Weiland .438, Williamson .167

GIVING BACK THE INHERITANCE – Junior RHP Joey Williamson has taken the mound with 11 batters on base this season and has allowed just three of them to score (27%) ... Williamson has been particularly strong versus his first batters faced, allowing just 2-for-12 batting with six strikeouts in those situations (BB, 2 HBP, 3 R).

SUPER SAVER – Closer Kyle Weiland saved three straight games two weeks ago and already has bested Aaron Heilman’s ND record for saves by a freshman (9, in ’98) ... Weiland converted each of his first nine save chances (now 10-of-11) and ranks fourth on the ND season saves list, behind J.P. Gagne (13, in ’03), Ryan Doherty (12, in ’04) and John Corbin (11, in ’00) ... he typically has done better at the end of his outings, allowing 6-of-7 inherited runners to score while first batters faced are hitting 7-for-16 (.438) vs. him (BB, HBP, 4 R, 2 Ks) ... after the first batters in his outings, Weiland has held oppos- ing hitters to a combined .215 batting avg. (17-for-79).

DURY DOES IT – Junior LHP Mike Dury was the third of four Irish relievers and retired five of the six batters he faced in the recent win over Ball State (K) while improving to 5-0 in his Irish career ... Dury took the mound with two outs and two runners on base in the top of the seventh, inducing a rightside popup off the bat of Kyle Dygert to keep the deficit at 4-3 ... his 2006 season stats include a 2.76 ERA in 15 appearances and 16.1 innings (11 H/.193 opp. avg., 10 Ks, 4 BB), with a 1.91 career ERA in 56.2 IP (37 Ks, 15 BB, 50 H/.239) ... he is close to reaching the minimum innings pitched (60) required for inclusion on the ND career ERA list and ultimately could break a record that has stood for 45 years (All-American Nick Palihnich’s 2.36 career ERA, from 1959-61).

FOR OPENERS – Following the 3-0 win over Indiana State, ND now is 8-1 in its past nine season openers, with five straight wins (29-9 margin in the past three openers).

PLAYING THE FIELD – Notre Dame faced three Big 12 Conference teams earlier this season (Oklahoma, Nebraska and Texas A&M), continuing a long trend that has seen the Irish face teams from all over the nation ... Big 12 team Oklahoma State is one of just a handful of teams from the nation’s top conferences that Notre Dame never has faced (as are Kansas, also of the Big 12, and ACC team Maryland) ... ND baseball has faced 285 opponents in its 115-year history, including 177 of 283 teams (63%) that played on the Div. I level in 2005 (many of the teams ND has not faced are from the smaller confer- ences) ... other teams of note that ND has yet to face include emerging programs such as the College of Charleston, Virginia Commonwealth, Coastal Carolina, Louisiana-Lafayette, East Carolina and Southern Mississippi – plus west-coast teams such as Cal Poly, San Jose State, UNLV and Utah.

SCORING STREAK ENDS AT 215 – The second-longest scoring streak in Notre Dame baseball history (215 games, dating back to 2002) ended in the early-season loss to the host team Minnesota at the Dairy Queen Classic (8-0; followed by a 2-0 loss to Arizona) ... a 2002 shutout loss to Rutgers ended ND’s record scoring streak (231) but the Irish then scored in 215 straight before the loss to the Gophers ... ND now has been shut out just eight times in the 12-year Paul Mainieri era (never more than twice in the same season).